Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-12-24
THE TALK OF CHICAGO.


IT STILL DEALS LARGELY WITH
THE EXECUTED ANARCHISTS
Some Conclusions Arrived ut by Walter
welman-Results Of Interviews with
Capt. Black, Mr.. Grinneil and Othcrs-
Some Interesting Statements Made.
Especial Correspondence.l
CHICAGO, Dec 20-Though several weeks
have passed since the five Anarchists persisted
in the jail, Chicago people are not yet tired
talking of that celebrated case Time enough
has now elapsed to allow public opinion to
settle into the even tenor Of its way, and it is
as apparent now as it ever was that the voice
of the people was for the blood Of the male
factors Much, though not universal, satis-
faction is expressed At the execution Of the
sentence, and every man is congratulating
his neiShbor on the hedisappearance Of Anarchy
from the community. And the best Of it all
isthat these congratulations are well founded.
Nothing could be more certain than that
Anarchy-organized Anarchy-is one Of the
things of the past IN this city. The fact is,
there never were any Anarchists in this city
whose pernicious activity could not have
been cut short by a score or two OF work
house sentences judiciously distributed
Hanging would never have been necessary ~
the milder remedy had been applied in good
season. Mr.. Brayton, who was one OF tho
jurors in the Anarchist case, tells me that be
took the trouble, few weeks ago, to 60 to
police headquarters and make inquiry con-
cernins the Anarchist party in Chicago and
its strength. Mr.. Brayton, IS . prudent
man Of family, wanted to know IL there
was any real danger to be appre-
hended on hanging day. He was informed
that there is not now, and has not been for .
year and a half, any organized anarchy in
the city, and that the Anarchist party never
numbered to exceed 500 men, Of whom not
two score had sufficient courage, physical or
moral, to render them at all dangerous to
society or even to such individuals as might
incur their displeasure. It may well be
doubted if there were half q dozen genuine,
nervy dynamitards in the lot They were
chiefly a beer party. Spies, their nominal
leader, was q pleasure seeker rather than .
blood letter, and, though somewhat Of an
Anarchist by trade, was insincere Of belief
and harmless OF purpose Spies was the edi-
tor Of The Arbeiter Zeitung. "f do not
take the lead in this matter and make some
money out Of il, !" be once said to . friend, .
newspaper man like hlmself, ''some one else
will 1 may as well do it as any one" Spies
cared nothing for Anarchy or dynamite, and
after be had gotten into the scrape it was his
intention, so his nominal mother law, Mira
Van Zandt, told me the other day, to SO at
once TO Europe, in case be ever got out, and
act as correspondent for American papers
Little Lingg was the one dangerous man in the
lot. Now that 1t Is all over, one cannot help
thinking what lot Of terrible things we have
bad and what a lot Of fear and trembling we
have indulsed in over . very trifiing affair.
This much now appears palmer than it
ever did before. 1t is rs we'll settled Is any
thing of the sort can be that not one Of the
men who were executed knew who threw
that bomb at the HAymarket> had . long
talk q day or two since with Capt Black, the
CHIEF counsel for the Anarchists, and Q man
whose truthfulness and humanity have won
for him a high place in the estimation Of the
people Of Chicago Mr.. Black, who fs Q
brother Of Gen. Black. the commissioner Of
pensions at Washington, IL Q man whose
absolute veracity and good faith no ono who
knows him would ever call into question
Mr.. Black declared to mo with ell the
emphasis Of which his eloquent voice IL
capable that he believes now As firmly as be
cver did that his late clients were innocent Of
any intent to take human life, and Of any
participation in the act by which life was
sacrificed that night Capt. Black says he
knows-not simply that he believes, but that
be knows-that the man who threw the
bomb was an entire stranger to the men
executed in Cook county jail II Capt
Black had learned in the privacy Of his rela-
tons with those men as their lawyer that
they did know the bomb thrower, he might
aud indeed certainly would conceal that fact,
but be would not volunteer the declaration
which appears above. Mr.. Black thinks tho
bomb thrower was not q Chicago man at all,
and that his act was performed entirely on
his own responsibility, without even . con-
sultstion with any one Of the executed men
Mr.. Black believes the man who threw the
bomb is now in New York city, and says
that were be the public prosecutor an effort
would be made to bring that man to justica
Being somewhat impressed by the captains
ftatement, called On States Attorney Grin
oel, the public Prosecutor, and asked him
about the bomb thrower. ''Of course the
Anarchists and the bomb thrower were con-
Eected, he declared; Il do not mean to say
tl.at the executed men personally knew tho
man who threw the bomb, nor that he knew
them or any one Of them, but it is quite clear,
as was brought out in the trial, that whoever
threw the bomb was led to do SO by the
advice, teachings and plans Of the men
who were hanged in the Jail three weeks
ago. OF Juror Brayton asked the ques-
tiop, "Did the jury, in making up its verdict,
reach the conclusion that there was co-opera-
ton between the defendants and the man
who threw the bombf' at was agreed by
ell the jurors" he replied, that the instruc-
tions of the court were such that it was not
necessary for US to decide whether there was
or was not actual collusion between the de-
PENDANTS and the thrower Of the bomb"
In the trial several witnesses were brought
In by the state to prove that Spies and
Schwab had met in the alley near the Hay
market and there handled bomb and talked
about it. This was just before the tragedy
The state made q vigorous effort to establish
this proposition, as it did to provo its claim
that Sam Fielden, who was speaking ON the
wagon at the Haymarket when the police
approached on that fateful night, repeatedly
fired his revolver at tbs officers Yet it was
for Schwab and Fielden that the judge who
tried the case. and the states attorney who
prosecuted it. joined in q Recommendation
to the governor for mercy-a recommenda-
ton which saved their necks from the gal
lows. If Schwab and Fielden, the only ones
who were charged with the commission Of
any overt acts, did not merit hanging, the
commission of an overt act must be deemed
Of little Importance in the case.
Doubtless the general public believes that
the men who were hanged were hanged be-
cause they threw the bomb or conspired with